Czechoslovakia First Republic 1920-1929
President Masaryk s 70 th Birthday 1920 Type I Subtypes Subtype A Subtype B Subtype C Subtype D Subtype E Subtype F Subtype G Subtype H Subtype I Subtype J
President Masaryk s 70 th Birthday 1920 Plate Flaws Short base on 2 Rose in hair Ultramarine Printing Type I Type I Engraved Denominations
Allegories The Dove 1920-1932 Comb Perforated 14 Dark blue green Light blue green Type I Type I Line perforated 13¾ The 5 haler blue and both the two 10 haler green exist but are uncommon. Imperforate The 20 haler exists but is uncommon. Dark blue green Light blue green Type I Type I Type I Type I
Allegories The Dove Perforation Variations Larger or smaller stamps resulted from misaligned punch bar movements on the hand-operated comb perforation machine Extended Type I Type I Curtailed Type I Type I Horizontal On rare occasions operators placed the punch bar in a horizontal orientation. Type I Type I
Allegories The Dove Failed Booklet Issue Intended for booklet panes that never materialized, postal authorities eventually released the stamps to the general public. Ninety-cliché plate. Positions 1-2, 11-12. Plate XI. Bump on the right side of the coloured triangle above the A in POŠTA. No bump. Violet and blue 5 haler Dove, position 11. All well-known negative flaws occurring on plates up to and including Plate X appear on ninety-cliché plates. The negative flaw in position 11 first occurred on Plate XI and does not appear on the ninety-cliché plates. Therefore the blocks used to construct the ninety-cliché matrix came from Plate X. 1 2 3 5 6 7 5 6 7 97 96 95 1 2 3 11 12 13 15 16 17 15 16 17 87 86 85 11 12 13 21 22 23 25 26 27 25 26 27 77 76 75 21 22 23 31 32 33 35 36 37 35 36 37 67 66 65 31 32 33 41 42 43 45 46 47 45 46 47 57 56 55 41 42 43 51 52 53 55 56 57 55 56 57 47 46 45 51 52 53 61 62 63 65 66 67 65 66 67 37 36 35 61 62 63 71 72 73 75 76 77 75 76 77 27 26 25 71 72 73 81 82 83 85 86 87 85 86 87 17 16 15 81 82 83 91 92 93 95 96 97 95 96 97 7 6 5 91 92 93 Plate X: Source of the matrix blocks. Disposition of the matrix blocks in Plate I. Schematic representation of a ninety-cliché booklet plate and its source. A workman cut two vertical thirty-cliché blocks from Plate X of the violet 5 haler Dove. He made three copies of each block for a total of six blocks. (A similar process was used to produce plates for the olive-bistre 10 haler Dove.) He put three blocks in the left side of the matrix to create the ninety-cliché plate used for Booklet Plate I. In the centre of the gutter he offset the stress bars: the left upward, the right downward. The goal was to create 2 3 stamp panes with enough selvage to mount them within booklet covers. This was accomplished by inverting the centre block and creating a gutter to its right. The gutter provided the needed selvage for the centre and rightmost six-stamp panes. The leftmost six-stamp panes used the sheet s left selvage.
Allegories The Dove Failed Booklet Issue Inverted Pairs and Gutters 5 6 5 6 96 95 5 6 15 16 15 16 86 85 15 16 25 26 25 26 76 75 25 26 35 36 35 36 66 65 35 36 45 46 45 46 56 55 45 46 55 56 55 56 46 45 55 56 65 66 65 66 36 35 65 66 75 76 75 76 26 25 75 76 85 86 85 86 16 15 85 86 95 96 95 96 6 5 95 96 Source of the replicated matrix block. An unknown Plate Disposition of the replicated matrix block. 20 haler sixty-cliché plate
Allegories The Dove Failed Booklet Issue
Allegories The Liberated Republic 1920-1926 Comb Perforated 14 Type I Type I I Line perforated 13¾ Type I Type I I Type I Type I I
Allegories The Liberated Republic Imperforate The 40 haler Type I and 50 haler green are uncommon. The 150 haler exists but is very scarce. Type I Failed Booklet Issue Type I
Allegories The Liberated Republic Provisional Postage Due A red 50/50 haler error exists but is a great rarity Comb Perforated 14 Type I I Line perforated 13¾ A 100 haler overprint exists but is uncommon Type I I Type I I
The Allegory Issues 1920 Agriculture and Science 1920 1923 Line Perforated 13¾ Photographic Typography Draft A Lacks Obrovský s signature Matrix Typography Draft B With Obrovský s signature Type I The initial assembly of the 400 haler matrix proved unsatisfactory. An engraver cut a new die for a workman to use to create two new five-die strips. From those he fashioned seven new ten-die strips to replace the damaged rows in the matrix. As can be seen, in the new die the engraver fashioned broader centres in the zeros. It is not known why the original master die could not be used for this purpose. On Plate I, in four of the ten-stamp rows the denomination digits contained zeros with broad centres (). On Plate II, three such rows appeared. In the remaining rows on both plates the denomination zeros had narrow centres (Type I). Comb perforated 13¾ 13½
The Allegory Issues 1920 Agriculture and Science Provisional Postage Due 1926-1928 Line perforated 13¾ Denomination obscured by three wavy lines Type I Denomination obscured by five wavy lines Comb perforated 13¾ 13½ The 40 haler on 300 haler exists in this perforation but is rather uncommon and a great rarity when mint
The Allegory Issues 1920 Agriculture and Science Provisional Airmail Service 19222-1932 Black Overprint Line perforated 13¾ Denomination obscured by three wavy lines Blue Overprint Type I The Husita 1920 1921 Gutters exist but are scarce Red Cross 1920 Type I
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science 1923-1926 Type I Line perforated 13¾ Five die matrix Type I Identifiers This typical sequence of dies sometimes altered after matrix repairs. Dies may be found in various combinations. Die 1 Die 2 Die 3 Die 4 Die 5 Die A Replacement Dies Die B Die C No flaw No flawed dies
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science 1923-1926 Type I Comb perforated 13¾ 13½ Five die matrix Type I Identifiers This typical die sequence sometimes altered after matrix repairs Die 1 Die 2 Die 3 Die 4 Die 5 Die A Replacement Dies Die B Die C No flaw
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science 1923-1926 Line perforated 13¾ Five die matrix Identifiers Original condition Damage to dies inflicted during matrix handling Dies 1, 3, and 5 Die 2 Die 4 Die 2 Die 4 No flaw Die 1 Die 2 Die 3 Die 4 Die 5 No flaw Ten die matrix Dies 1-4 and 6-10 Die 5 No flaw
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science 1923-1926 Comb perforated 13¾ 13½ Five die matrix Identifiers Original condition Damage to dies inflicted during matrix handling Dies 1, 3, and 5 Die 2 Die 4 Die 2 Die 4 No flaw Die 1 Die 2 Die 3 Die 4 Die 5 No flaw Ten die matrix Dies 1-4 and 6-19 Die 5 No flaw
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science 1923-1926 I Line perforated 13¾ Ten die matrix I Identifiers Dies 1-2 and 4-9 Die 3 Die 10 No flaw Die 1 Die 2 Die 3 Die 4 Die 5 Die 6 Die 7 Die 8 Die 9 Die 10
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science 1923-1926 I Comb perforated 13¾ 13½ Ten die matrix I Identifiers Dies 1-2 and 4-9 Die 3 Die 10 No flaw Die 1 Die 2 Die 3 Die 4 Die 5 Die 6 Die 7 Die 8 Die 9 Die 10
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science 1923-1926 I Upper set: Line perforated 13¾ ; Lower set: Comb perforated 13¾ 13½ Ten die matrix Dies 2, 6-7, and 9-10 I Identifier I Identifier No flaw Die 1 Die 3 Die 4 Die 5 Die 8 Dies 2, 6-7, and 9-10 No flaw Die 1 Die 3 Die 4 Die 5 Die 8
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science I A failed design revision The Intended I Revision (so-called Type IV) The printer attempted to remove kinks from the veins in the upper cluster s leaves. Only one percent of all I stamps display complete or nearly complete veins in the upper cluster s leaves. The I Revision as Most Commonly Seen Repairing the kinks on the master die slightly depressed these veins, the result being a broken appearance when printed. Ninety-nine percent of all I stamps display broken or incomplete veins in the upper cluster.
Allegories 1923 Agriculture and Science The Dies in a I Matrix The printer accidentally used dies to repair a I matrix. I I Press Position Numbers Often mistaken for plate numbers, the digits 1-4 actually represent the plate s position on the press. Although shown symmetrically arranged, the digits could appear in differing positions. 4 1 3 2
Eighth Sokol Games in Prague Gum embossed with the monogram of the Czechoslovak Postal Service 1926 Watermarked P5 Watermarked P6 Watermarked P7 Watermarked P8
President T G Masaryk s 75 th Birthday Photogravure Comb perforated 13¾ 13½ 1925 Watermarked P1 Ordinary white paper Watermarked P2 Watermarked P3 Watermarked P4 Watermarked P1 Translucent greyish paper Watermarked P2 Watermarked P3 Watermarked P4
President T G Masaryk s 75 th Birthday Photogravure Line perforated 13¾ 1925 Watermarked P1 Watermarked P2 Watermarked P3 Watermarked P4
President T G Masaryk s 75 th Birthday Engraved 1925 Large Format Type I A: 19.2 23 mm Watermarked P1 Watermarked P2 Watermarked P3 Watermarked P4
President T G Masaryk s 75 th Birthday Engraved 1925 Large Format Type I B: 19.8 22.4 mm Watermarked P5 Watermarked P6 Watermarked P7 Watermarked P8
President T G Masaryk s 75 th Birthday Engraved 1925 Small format 1: 18.7 21.4 mm Line perforated 13¾ 1 Kč hatch on shoulder 3 Kč lines in value tablet Watermarked P5 Watermarked P6 Watermarked P7 Watermarked P8 I 1 Kč lines on shoulder 3 Kč grill in value tablet Watermarked P5 Watermarked P6 Watermarked P7 Watermarked P8 I
President T G Masaryk s 75 th Birthday Engraved 1925 Small format 2: 19.2 22 mm Line perforated 9¾ Type IV Lines in value tablet, Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Watermark P5 Gum without stripes Watermark P7 Gum with stripes Type V Grill in value tablet Thin colored frame around numeral Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Type IV Type V
President T G Masaryk s 75 th Birthday Engraved 1925 Small format 2: 19.2 22 mm Line perforated 9¾ Grill in value tablet Thick coloured frame around numerals Type VI Long moustache Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Watermark P7 No watermark No watermark Translucent paper Thick paper Type VII Unwatermarked A scarce watermarked version of Type VII exists Short moustache Thick No stripes Gum with stripes Long Short
President T G Masaryk s 75 th Birthday Modified Design 1926 Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Unwatermarked No stripes Gum with stripes Type I Moustache extends to the left; line separates the vertical white bar from the top horizontal white bar. Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Watermark P5 Watermark P7 Coil Moustache lacks leftward extension; vertical white bar not separated from the top horizontal white bar. Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Watermark P5 Watermark P7 Unwatermarked Coil Type I Gum with stripes No stripes
Castles, Landscapes, and Towns 1926 Watermark P5 Coil Watermark P6 Coil Strahov Watermark P7 Coil Coil Watermark P8 Coil Karlštejn
Castles, Landscapes, and Towns Unwatermarked 1926 Gum with stripes Coil Karlštejn Prague Gum without stripes Coil
Prague and the High Tatra Mountains 1926 Watermarked On smooth white paper All variations of the 2 Kč and 3 Kč are also found on parchment paper Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Blue Ultramarine Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Type I Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Type I
Prague and the High Tatra Mountains 1926 Watermarked On smooth white paper Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Watermark P5 Watermark P6 Watermark P7 Watermark P8 Unwatermarked The 2 Kč is also found on parchment paper The 2 Kč only exists in blue, the 3 Kč only as Blue Type I
1928 Postage Due Issue 1928 Normal A in Doplatné Short A in Doplatné
1928 Postage Due Issue 1928 Unless illustrated, Type I is always an ordinary stamp that lacks any distinctive identifier Type I Type I I Type I I I Type I I Type I I I Type I I
1928 Postage Due Issue 1928 Unless illustrated, Type I is always an ordinary stamp that lacks any distinctive identifier I Type I I I Type I I I Type I I I Type I I I Type I I
Tenth Anniversary of the Founding of Czechoslovakia 1928 Line perforated 13¾ An extremely scarce version exists line perforated 12¼
Millennium of the Death of St Wenceslas 1929 Red-brown Castles and Towns Brown 1929 Red-violet Blue-violet
National Coat of Arms 1929 White paper Brown Yellow-brown Coil Type 1 Red-brown Brown Parchment paper Brown Red-brown Type I Horizontal lines break up the grid Slanted lines break up the grid